A few weeks after the Indiana Pacers’ season ended with a franchise worst 63rd loss to the Detroit Pistons, Pacers General Manager Chad Buchanan joined The Ride with JMV to discuss the upcoming NBA Draft Lottery, and more importantly, the thought process behind one of the franchise’s most aggressive recent moves. “I think when we made the trade, obviously we knew there was a risk involved. With the draft pick involved, we looked at the finances of the situation and the scenario where you keep the pick, and the scenario where you lose the pick, and we felt both scenarios provided opportunities to help our team be better next year.” That answer from Buchanan got me thinking about two simple questions, do the Pacers actually get better next season because of this move, and would they have been better off just keeping their pick? Mar 15, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks center Myles Turner (3) looks for a shot against Indiana Pacers center Ivica Zubac (40) in the second quarter at Fiserv Forum.…